CAST

For spell casters. If you want to throw a spell at someone or something.

Note that the name of the spell must be enclosed by apostrophes ('). Also, the
spell name doesn't need to be typed fully - abbreviations are also accepted
(e.g. cast 'ench' sword).

Each spell takes a given amount of time to cast.

When already in combat, your opponent is automatically set to target if you
cast offensive spells with no argument. See the example for explicit detail.

Example:

> cast 'lightning bolt' cavebear
The lightning bolt hits the cavebear with full impact
the cavebear:Fine> cast quick 'lightning bolt'
The lightning bolt hits the cavebear with full impact
the cavebear:Hurt>

Casting a spell uses up your mana. The actual quantity used has a random
component, which decreases if you learn the spell very well.

Attempting a spell you don't know well, or that costs almost all your mana, is
likely to result in a backfire. When you start casting, you will be warned if
the risk of backfire is higher than normal: you will receive the message
"You muster all of your concentration..." instead of "You start to
concentrate..."

This is true even of spells like enchant, sanctuary and heal, which used to
have a fixed effect. Putting only a few practices on a spell means casting
it at a lower effective level, with lesser effects and higher mana cost.
Hard to learn, high-level spells may require many practice sessions before
you can even attempt to use them.

Casting also takes an optional <effort> parameter, just before the name of
the spell. You can cast a spell more slowly but with greater effects, or
quickly but with a higher chance of backfire. The possible efforts are: